OpenAI is reportedly preparing to release an AI-powered web browser that will compete with Alphabet’s Google Chrome, Reuters said, citing three sources familiar with the matter.
The browser is scheduled to launch in the coming weeks and will use artificial intelligence to change how consumers browse the web.
OpenAI set to challenge Google Chrome
The development will give OpenAI access to user data, which has been central to Google’s success, the report said.
If adopted by the 500 million weekly active users of ChatGPT, OpenAI’s browser could pressure a component of rival Google’s advertising revenue stream.
Chrome supports Alphabet’s advertising business, which generates nearly three-quarters of its revenue, by providing user information to help target advertisements and routing search traffic to Google’s search engine by default, the report said.
OpenAI’s browser is also designed to keep some user interactions within a ChatGPT-like native chat interface instead of directing users to websites.
The browser forms part of OpenAI’s strategy to integrate its services across consumers’ personal and work lives, one source said.
Led by entrepreneur Sam Altman, OpenAI disrupted the technology industry with the launch of its AI chatbot ChatGPT in late 2022.
Following its success, OpenAI has faced competition from rivals including the search engine company and startup Anthropic, and is seeking new areas of growth.
In May, OpenAI said it would enter the hardware domain, paying $6.5 billion to buy io, an AI devices startup from Apple’s former design chief, Jony Ive.
OpenAI declined to comment, the Reuters report said.
